Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders and employees across the country and find out more […]

Startup to Watch: GoSweat

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders and employees across the country and find out more about their goals and ambitions, what the future holds and (for all you startup jobseekers out there looking for the inside scoop) what they look for in a prospective employee.

This week, we’re interviewing Steph Newport-Booth, Co-Founder of GoSweat: a wellness benefit for companies that gives their employees the freedom to discover and book 1000s of fitness and wellbeing experiences. She describes it as “doing for fitness what Tripadvisor has done for travel or JustEats for takeaways”.

Hi Steph, what would you say GoSweat’s mission is?

To offer any activity, at any time, to anyone! When it comes to our own employees – we want to be able to offer them any experience that they want and support their physical health. We don’t want to offer them the standard ‘gym membership’ that most startup companies offer their employees. Instead, we want to give them the freedom and flexibility to do the classes that they enjoy and that support their physical and mental wellbeing. If they want to use Pure Gym or have physiotherapy – they can do this all through GoSweat. We’re the best company perk out there!

What are your values as a startup employer?

Commitment, collaboration, autonomy and fun! We work with companies, so success and growing the business really starts within our office and making it a comfortable, friendly and fun place to work.

Also, everyone that works here has a real commitment to our mission: getting people into fitness! We’re a start up that has a real drive, and the people who work here have a connection to sport and activities and want to share that with as many people as possible.

Myself and Alex, my Co-Founder, did the Aldi Area Manager Graduate Scheme and whilst we were very well paid, and it was clear that we were looked after financially, the benefits were very black and white. Both of us are passionate about fitness and well-being, so we were looking at employee perks like cheaper gym memberships etc. – and they weren’t that good and didn’t really meet our needs. We realised that this was the norm, across startups and bigger corporates! And when it comes to booking experiences, and fun sporting activities like boxing and climbing, there are so many barriers in terms of price.

The “go to” thing is to give your employees gym memberships, and this is very outdated. Employers get around 5.4% of actual engagement with this method. However with GoSweat, engagement jumps to 83%. That’s crazy different! This is because employees can book a range of things: high-board diving, massages, rock climbing – you name it.

How have you guys grown since GoSweat was founded in 2016?

It has been pretty crazy. Over the past few years, the GoSweat team has grown massively, as have the number of companies we work with. From a personal perspective, GoSweat doesn’t just feel like it’s my startup anymore: it belongs to everyone who uses it and works here. We all see where we are heading and we’re motivated to get there! We truly want to conquer the country!

Our growth in 2019 in particular was pretty astonishing. In January 2019, 8 of us were working out of a pretty small office. Now we’ve moved into a 35-50 people office and there are 15 of us! We’ve nearly doubled our workforce and hope to fill up our new office in 2020. And we think we can – the fitness industry is massive, there’s room for nimble startup operators like ourselves to disrupt things, and we have plenty of opportunity to chase down. There’s a lot of scope for us to grow.

What’s next for GoSweat in the UK and internationally?

We want to conquer the country! We’re launching in 12 new cities in the UK this year, and in 2021 we might go international. We essentially want to cover all the cities where companies want GoSweat and don’t have it. We also want to continue expanding the number of experiences we offer.

What do you look for in an employee?

We look for the kind of people that share our passion and enthusiasm for trying new things, however weird and wacky! For example, last night we all decided to go trampolining. It was last minute and spontaneous, but everyone was very keen and we had the best time. People can have amazing CVs and experience, but when you talk to them they’re not that interested in trying new experiences, which is kind of what our startup company stands for! We also want people that are energetic, outgoing and easy to get along with. You spend the majority of your time at work, so why not enjoy it?

What advice would you give to people thinking about founding their own company but currently unsure? What about people just leaving school/university?

The best advice I can give is to think about the best thing that could happen. Don’t focus on the worst that could happen. You’ve got to think positively about what you are doing and where you are going, and you’ve got to think that you can make the best case scenario happen! It’s especially important to have a positive mindset at the beginning, because things can get tough.

Also, don’t found a startup by yourself! It’s always good to go into it with a partner (or two!) that you know you can rely on. As I’ve said, the path to success is not always linear and being a founder can be quite tough. It’s invaluable having other people to share the load. But, as the saying goes: “too many chefs spoil the broth”! More than three startup founders can be a bit too much.

And don’t be afraid to bootstrap something together. We didn’t have any funding for the first two and a half years, so very much funnelled our own money into building GoSweat at the beginning. When we did get funding, however, it was invaluable. It gives you rocket fuel to expand and develop your product offering.

Starting a business is not easy! In fact, it’s darn right difficult, especially if it’s your first crack at founding a startup or if you don’t have much money / support to start with. There’s a reason 90% of startups fail… but you don’t have to be part of that club. Assuming you already have […]

5 Tips For Getting Your Startup Off The Ground

Starting a business is not easy! In fact, it’s darn right difficult, especially if it’s your first crack at founding a startup or if you don’t have much money / support to start with. There’s a reason 90% of startups fail… but you don’t have to be part of that club. Assuming you already have a great idea that you’re passionate about and think has the potential to make it big, here are 5 tips for getting your startup off the ground!

Save, save, save!

I cannot stress this enough. There’s a reason the average age of a successful startup founder is 45. They not only have the experience, but also (often) the savings to help their business succeed. The first few years of founding a startup can be pretty rough: you often make little to no money, struggle to secure funding and face the hurdles of developing an MVP. If you have savings, you can bootstrap something together and rest a little easier knowing that you have something to fall back on if things don’t quite work out. Alleviating the stress of “how can I afford next month’s rent?” will be seriously helpful when you’ll be stressed enough already with the startup!

Ask your friends and family for help

Your friends and family love you and trust you, and can provide a great deal of emotional and financial support during your startup journey. In the US, the second biggest source of seed funding, after personal savings and credit, is friends and family. So don’t be afraid to ask your loved ones for investment, a loan, or if they’re feeling especially generous… a gift! This can help you get the ball rolling and develop an MVP, and give you some great pitch practice when you run your business plan past them (which you definitely should be doing!).

On the emotional support side, founding a startup is tough and you’ll face challenges on a daily basis. It’s therefore super helpful to have a strong support system that you know you can rely on when the going gets tough. It also makes small (or big!) victories that much sweeter when you have people to celebrate with.

Cultivate resilience

Founding a startup is intensely rewarding… but it can also be extremely draining. You have a lot on your plate, likely work around the clock and encounter setbacks and failures on a daily basis. Those that persevere through it all are the ones that succeed.

But how, you may ask, can I cultivate resilience? Firstly, try and be as adaptable and flexible as you can to changing situations. You can plan for the future… but ultimately a lot of it is unpredictable. Whatever comes your way, tackle it with optimism and hardwork and you’ll do just fine. Secondly, be purposeful and mindful. Resilient people have clear goals, motivations and directions. These enable you to devise effective solutions during times of crisis.

Network!!

Networking is crucial. Reach out to any entrepreneurs you know, experts in the industry, financiers, people at the same stage in their startup journey as you, and anyone else you think could be useful! Talk to as many people as possible (without becoming that annoying, needy friend of course) and soak up their advice and feedback on your startup story to date. They’ll be great to bounce ideas off, and might even introduce you to potential investors and employees… which is invaluable. While ensuring you stay respectful and polite, don’t be afraid to send people emails, message them on Linkedin and attend startup conferences. The startup scene in London is incredibly welcoming and nurturing and can help you get started. People want you to succeed!

Have a bullet-proof business plan

If you want to secure venture funding, which can often be crucial for your startup’s success, you’ll need to develop a bullet-proof business plan.

Investors want to (1) understand how you plan to operate your business and (2) determine your projected growth rates and how they stand to gain by getting involved. They can’t do either of these things if you don’t have a developed business plan.

They want to see a clear overview of your business – the nuts and bolts who you are and what your startup mission is / will be. They also want to see some rational market analysis, including detailed research on your competitors, how you are positioned within this space, and your target audience. Additionally, you should definitely outline your organisational structure, mission and values, as well as how you plan on managing your company.

Perhaps the most important part of your business plan, however, is your financials. Do your best to construct a 3 to 5 year financial model, and make sure your predictions are realistic and not overinflated. Outline, if you can, when you think you’ll be profitable and how.

On a personal level, a clearly defined business plan will give you direction and a road-map to success. It will help you navigate challenges and seize opportunities!

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders and employees across the country and find out more […]

Startup to Watch: Bark.com

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders and employees across the country and find out more about their goals and ambitions, what the future holds and (for all you startup jobseekers out there looking for the inside scoop) what they look for in a prospective employee.

This week, we’re interviewing Kai Feller, Co-Founder of Bark.com – the UK’s biggest online local services marketplace. Bark.com is expanding fast across the globe, hiring equally as fast and fundamentally changing the way we source local services. It has also repeatedly shunned venture capital opportunities, preferring instead to be self-funded.

Hi Kai! What would you say Bark.com’s mission is?

Bark’s mission is to ultimately be the Amazon of services. We want to bring services online and into the 21st century as we feel that this side of things has been left behind. It’s easy to buy and sell products online, but it’s not easy to buy and sell services online and we’re at the forefront of companies changing this. We’ve only just got rid of the yellow pages! The marketplace for services is still very old-fashioned.

On the consumer side, we want individuals to come on Bark.com and be able to find a professional for any service they are looking for and a solution that fits their needs. For example, if they are looking for a dog walker, we want to give them the option of buying that service there and then, or just browsing options for purchase at a later date. Alternatively, they could be looking for a web designer – we want to provide the experience that they want and need.

On the professional side, we want to help service providers grow their businesses by getting online and connecting with customers. They are not usually online marketing professionals, so we want to take that burden away from them and allow them to focus on what they are good at – providing their services; be they carpentry, nails or hair, for example. We want to help these professionals across the globe.

Can you tell us about your growth over the past few years? What’s next for Bark.com in the UK and globally?

We launched in January 2015 and started off in a typical startup style: in a flat, bootstrapping something together. We spent the first couple of years throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what stuck. We tried three different business models and finally found one that worked for us a couple of years ago, which I would say transformed us into a ‘proper company’.

Now we’re a team of 50 all working out of our Paddington office. Bark.com is live in the US, South Africa and Canada as well as the UK, but we don’t currently have any workers outside of the UK. We run all of our global operations from our London office. On a separate note, we’re also cash generative and profitable – quite significantly. We’re already turning over well over £20m. We urgently need to reinvest in the hiring side to accelerate growth even more, so expect to see us hiring like crazy in 2020!

I would still say though that Bark is in beta. We have a product up and running, but we recognise it’s still imperfect and a lot of 2020 will be focused on really making it a better experience for the end user. We want to build something properly powerful and valuable. On the consumer side, we want to create tailored experiences for everyone coming on the site. On the professional side, we want to provide a suite of tools to facilitate that and turn Bark into an absolute must for any small business, instead of a value-adding thing. To do something like that, we need an amazing team, which is why recruitment is a massive priority for us in 2020. We need the best people.

We’ll also continue expanding internationally in 2020. We’re looking at launching in 5-10 new countries next year, all from the UK, so keep your eyes peeled!

What do you look for in an employee?

We look for people that are confident and exceptional. They must have great written and verbal communication skills (this is crucial), and must be very personable and a team player. Everyone in the Bark team is like that and if they’re not, they aren’t going to fit. Like any start up we face complex problems on a daily basis and we move very fast, so communication is incredibly important.

If you’re results-driven, innovative and a team player – you’ll fit right in at Bark.com. We want people that thrive on autonomy and make jumps, not steps. This is a pretty big deal to us, because we’re still at the stage where you can make a jump and add 20% to the business.

Ambitious and driven people also do well here. We love people that are passionate and like being challenged. This is especially important because we’re growing rapidly and looking to expand our team from 50 to 100 next year. This will naturally mean shifting more responsibility onto the team, so we need people that are adaptable, switched on, smart and ambitious.

We also want people who contribute to our company culture. You need to enjoy who you are working with as this is what keeps people motivated and thriving.

Do you offer any company perks?

A whole suite of them. We offer share options, private healthcare, a fully stocked kitchen, team lunches every friday and regular socials once a month, among other things. When we have our socials, they’re pretty huge and we definitely don’t hold back!

We also (and most importantly!) offer an unsolved problem and a challenging puzzle for employees to wrap their heads around. How do we transform Bark.com into the Amazon of services?

What’s your professional background? Do you have any advice for young people just starting their careers?

When I left university, I had a few options on the table. I had an offer from Cambridge to do a masters and an offer from JP Morgan in the investment banking division. Instead, I started a business called Socialite – which launched my career in the startup space and really led me to where I am today.

In terms of advice I would give young people just starting their careers, I would say do something that you’re passionate about, find interesting and think you could be involved in for the rest of your life. Once you get started in a career, it can be quite difficult to change path. Also, be ambitious and aim high. It’s better to aim high and only achieve half of your goals (or fail!) than to not to have difficult and ambitious goals in the first place. Lastly, network like crazy! I cannot stress enough how important this is. Not only will networking open up a load of opportunities, but it will also help you launch your own startup (if this is what you want!)

Do you have any advice for those thinking about founding their own startup but currently unsure?

If you have a startup idea, don’t think it’s “all in or all out”. Bootstrap something and play around with how it would work. If you are passionate about it, spend your free time on it: evenings, weekends and holidays. Also, speak to as many people as possible about your idea and get involved in the UK startup scene – which really is incredible and very nurturing. There are a tonne of people willing to give you advice and help you out.

If you do end up doing it full-time, be prepared for the hard work! Everyone faces hurdles and challenges (this is practically part of the job description!) and the people who are successful are the people who persevere.

So you’ve been interviewing for startup jobs for a few months and have received a few job offers (lucky you!). But how do you choose between the companies? Joining a startup poses risks and rewards, which is why it’s important to spend time weighing up the pros and cons of each job offer. Joining a […]

How to Pick the Right Startup to Join

So you’ve been interviewing for startup jobs for a few months and have received a few job offers (lucky you!). But how do you choose between the companies?

Joining a startup poses risks and rewards, which is why it’s important to spend time weighing up the pros and cons of each job offer. Joining a fast growing, innovative and well-run startup can really kickstart your career, open a lot of doors and provide you with a whole host of opportunities. However, joining a poorly managed, stagnating startup can lead to burnout, unhappiness and flagging motivation.

Through speaking to a lot of people, drawing on personal experiences and scouring the internet for the best advice, I’ve come to one key conclusion. When picking the right startup to join you should think like an investor.

This means, first and foremost, evaluating whether the startup’s mission and end product make sense to you. Is it something that you would use and/or could see others using? Try and determine whether what the startup builds is valuable to the world. I know this is a slightly fluffy statement, but do your research, and ask your peers and people with knowledge of the industry for their opinions. This can help you form a judgement. And if you don’t believe in the end mission, then it’s probably not right for you!

Secondly, look for evidence that the startup is already succeeding. Of course, if it’s in its early stages, data will likely be difficult to come by. But you should ask about early client wins and breakthroughs when your interviewing – does it sound like they’re making progress? When there is more public tangible data, look at growth. What trajectory are they on? This is more important than absolute figures.

Thirdly, evaluate how strong the team and the management are (in your mind). A startup’s success is often directly proportional to its founders ambitions. Have a dig into their credentials – do they have a strong academic / professional / entrepreneurial background, and come across as inspirational people you can truly learn from? Have they founded or been part of other “successful” startups? It’s certainly helpful if it shows that they know how to grow a company from the ground up. Also, investigate their leadership style when interviewing. Are they people of character? Are they tenacious? Are they approachable and do they foster a great company culture? If possible, read their blog posts and watch their interviews to better understand how they operate. This is important, as talented and driven people also recruit like minded individuals – so if the founders are of high calibre, then it’s likely the team will be too.

Once you have determined whether (or not!) you would invest in the startup based on these three initial areas, establish exactly who you would be working with and how they would support you. The smarter and more experienced your colleagues are, the more learning opportunities there will be. Great mentors also motivate you and provide opportunities for you to create impact. You can evaluate this by paying careful attention during your interview. Is your interviewer noticeably passionate about the mission? Are they switched on and engaged? It’s difficult to fake enthusiasm and drive.

Lastly, have they received investment? And if not, is there a good reason? When a company attains venture funding, it’s a big signal that it’s heading in the right direction and others have bought into its mission. Investors have made a (pretty expensive!) bet that it will be more valuable in the future. They’ve made this bet after conducting extensive market research, consulting experts, assessing company management and analysing the company’s data. In effect, they’ve carried out a lot of your research for you!!

An even BETTER signal is when the investors have a stellar reputation. The best VCs attract the best, most successful startups, so it’s really encouraging when the startup you are considering joining has big backers.

Here are a few of the biggest names in VC (there are hundreds of others, of course!):

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders and employees across the country and find out more […]

Startup To Watch: Antler

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders and employees across the country and find out more about their goals and ambitions, what the future holds and (for all you startup jobseekers out there looking for the inside scoop) what they look for in a prospective employee.

This week, we’re interviewing Antoine Poirson, a Partner at Antler – a startup generator and early-stage VC that enables the world’s most exceptional people to build global businesses from the ground up. Antler is expanding fast across the globe, building a startup community and on the hunt for prospective founders!

Hi Antoine! What would you say Antler’s mission is?

To enable highly talented individuals to get started on the entrepreneurial route or their next startup journey. We believe that there are three barriers to successful entrepreneurship: (1) building the right founding team, (2) figuring out the right idea and validating it and (3) accessing capital. We break these barriers to entrepreneurship and as a result help entrepreneurs succeed and build more solid businesses.

We provide our prospective founders with a pretty structured 6 month startup generator program. In the first 10 weeks, founders will need to be on location in our offices as this is when teams are formed and ideas and businesses are created and built. By carefully selecting a diverse group of people for our programs, we help budding entrepreneurs find the right co-founder with complementary skills and different experiences to their own. We then help them mature their ideas to the point that they become investable. Finally, we provide the capital and invest early on. Alongside our hands on support and strong network, this capital helps founders build an MVP, develop their product/service offering, and get their company to a Seed stage. Beyond this, we help them raise more capital from external investors.

You guys have grown a lot over the past few years! What’s next for Antler in the UK and globally?

We’ve officially set up and launched the first cohort of budding co-founders and we’re recruiting for the next London cohort, which is starting in February 2020. Every 6 months we look for a new cohort of 80 to 100 exceptional people and around 15-20 startups are born from this.

We also plan to expand our reach, geographically, outside of the capital. London has been our primary UK focus so far for our recruitment activities, but we want to explore other regions such as Manchester, Leeds, Bristol and Edinburgh. Not only is there huge potential there, but we want to build a stronger network within the UK startup community. This is very important to us.

We’re also going to focus on developing our current investments. We have a lot of prominent angels and top VCs in our network, which is really helpful for the entrepreneurs joining the Antler community. Expect to see our startups growing fast and further developing their business proposition.

Outside of the UK meanwhile, Antler is expanding! We’re currently live in 8 locations across the globe and will be launching in 5 more in 2020 so people can apply to join in other regions too (Singapore, New York, Amsterdam, Oslo, Stockholm, Sydney, Nairobi). We are building a global Antler community where founders can leverage a worldwide network of investors and advisers.

They should apply if they are looking to build a high potential startup in the near future with a strong co-founding team. If they want to work with the most driven, successful and ambitious individuals as co-founders and work on something that has the potential to scale globally, then our startup generator program is for them! The support, funding and global network our founders receive when they join the Antler community should be a core motivation for prospective applicants.

What do you look for in prospective founders?

We like to work with aspiring entrepreneurs that have experience: on average our founders have 8-10 years working experience. We also look for proof: proof of greatness, proof of perseverance and proof of drive. We want people who are self-starters and don’t need to be pushed to deliver something. They should always be on their toes and constantly think of ways to do things better, bigger and faster.

We also look for people with a “spike”. In other words, something that they’re exceptionally good at. This could be a technical skill, deep sector knowledge, or even a soft skill. It’s something that puts them in the top 2% of the talent pool and really makes them special.

You’ve worked internationally in startups. Do you have any advice for those thinking about taking the startup leap but currently unsure about leaving the corporate world?

Just get started, it’s as simple as that. If you are currently in a job and thinking about starting a business, it seems very risky and bold. What I have observed is that you face a bit of a paralysis. You constantly think that if you get started in 6 months rather than today, you’ll have more savings and be more prepared. However, it actually doesn’t bring much value to wait. The earlier you start the more you will achieve in the future and the more likely it is that you will reach your goals. So I would encourage everyone to get started as soon as possible.

Secondly, a lot of people think that they don’t have the right idea, but the idea is almost immaterial if they find the right team. I cannot stress enough how important your founding partners are to your success. Ideas are fairly common, but what isn’t normal is when a team is able to execute on that idea. This is what separates the successful startups from the ones that fail.

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders across the country and find out more about their […]

Startup To Watch: Zen Educate

Here at Work In Startups, we’re on a mission to champion the best and most exciting startups in the UK. To support this, we’re starting a new blog series highlighting some of the most innovative and fast-growing startups around. Follow us as we interview startup founders across the country and find out more about their goals and ambitions, what the future holds and (for all you startup jobseekers out there looking for the inside scoop) what they look for in a prospective employee.

Our mission is to improve the education system. Zen Educate is an accredited social enterprise, so it’s core to who we are. All schools need teachers and traditionally if a teacher is away, they call a recruitment agent. This is poor value for money and inefficient. We help schools cut out the middleman by providing an online platform for their hiring needs. This helps them save time and money, and it also helps teachers take back control, as they know where and when they can work in advance, and benefit from exceptional support and great rates.

Your growth over the past few years has been pretty astonishing. What does 2020 hold in store for Zen Educate?

As you’ve mentioned, we’ve just raised £5.6m in funding from Brighteye Ventures, an EdTech focused European VC, and this comes off the back of significant business growth. We’re tripling as a business year over year and hiring more people as a result. 6 months ago, we were a team of 20 and now we’re a team of 50 – which is an exciting place to be.

We currently work with over 4,000 teachers in Greater London and Manchester, not to mention numerous schools, and there’s definitely a lot of room to grow in these areas. We’re also launching in Birmingham in Q1 of 2020, which we’re looking forward to. Beyond the UK, inefficiencies in education staffing exist all over the world and few companies are poised to do something about this. A few education staffing platforms are having a lot of success in the US, but this business model has yet to reach continental Europe, Asia and Africa. As such, there are enormous global opportunities for Zen Educate.

What do you look for in an employee?

Value fit is key. Without giving too much away, we’re very deliberate about our hiring process and hire people who closely align with Zen Educate’s values.

We look for three main things:

People that care about what we do – if the mission inspires you, that’s a big reason to join

People that act like owners who thrive on autonomy

People that push themselves to be better by consistently choosing greatness over comfort

Do you have any advice for young people just starting their careers?

Life is short and fleeting, so work on stuff that means something to you. Even if this means changing your career drastically, do it. Life is too short to not be doing work that matters to you.

Do you have any advice for those thinking about founding their own startup but currently unsure?

Do it x1,000,000. You want to tell your grandkids about the person you became, not the person you could have been, so don’t wait! Once you decide to take the leap, speak to people and get advice. Find successful founders and suck up information from them like a sponge. Founders love helping other Founders. This will help you navigate challenges and opportunities that come your way.

On a personal note, before co-founding Zen Educate, I worked at Nutmeg – a very successful startup – for a few years. I went on that journey from the small team to a big team and learnt a lot in the process. Going on a journey with another company in the early stages is a great way to learn what it takes to build a successful company.

The ideal candidate for any job vacancy can take many shapes and forms but there are clearly some distinctive traits that recruiters are looking for. When it comes to startups it’s even more difficult to identify a compatible candidate given the dynamic of the field. In order to help you find out how to become […]

Are you a startup’s ideal candidate?

The ideal candidate for any job vacancy can take many shapes and forms but there are clearly some distinctive traits that recruiters are looking for. When it comes to startups it’s even more difficult to identify a compatible candidate given the dynamic of the field. In order to help you find out how to become a startup’s ideal candidate we have comprised a list of things to keep in mind when going to a startup interview. Check them out:

Convince them you are a problem solver

In an startup no matter if its early stage or in full growth, there will always be hurdles and unexpected issues, so everyone has to be able and ready to tackle them right away. You will be often given tasks out of your area of expertise or tasks that in a corporation would take years to even consider taking on, so you have to be quick on your feet and not afraid of putting the effort into finding the best way to approach them.

You love learning

School is over, long live the school! In a startup, the road from success to failure and every stop in between should be treated as a learning experience. Because have no doubt, you will develop new skills and get experience in all sorts of departments in a startup, so make sure that learning new things and leaving your comfort zone behind on a regular basis is something you really like and emphasize on that.

In for the long haul

Being committed to getting a job at a startup is not enough, but rather seeing the potential you have in a startup on long term is what it matters. It is hard to tell what’s going to happen in 1,2,5 years or even a few weeks from now. But before jumping at the opportunity of an interview with that hot startup, ask yourself: is this something I would like to do 1 year from now? Do I see myself as passionate about my work as I am right now at the idea of this position? This should not only help you figure out what you really want, professionally, but also show the recruiter that you are ready to jump on board for more than a few months.

Be ready to put all your skills at work

Dust up those design skills, or that customer care knowledge you have not used in a while because, you will definitely have the chance to put them at work. Emphasize on all the skills you have and giving practical examples where you used them toward improving a situation or getting something done, will now only show the interviewer that you pick up fast but also that you are not afraid of taking responsibilities.

Working in a startup is always a different but nonetheless beautiful experience, it’s the place where you will grow your entrepreneurial spirit and where you will experience the freedom to take decisions as well as being part of a fast growing, multicultural collective. So don’t hold back from showing your passion for a certain field, talk about side projects and tell them how you can help grow the company and help them achieve their long term goals.

And if you are looking for a certain position don’t forget to check out www.workinstartups.com and choose the category that suits you – the best part is that there are new jobs every day!